


Saving You, Saving Me

by Erikapell



Category: Archie Comics, Riverdale (TV 2017), Riverdale - Fandom, betty and jughead, bughead - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-21
Updated: 2017-02-24
Packaged: 2018-09-26 02:03:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9856985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Erikapell/pseuds/Erikapell
Summary: Why could no one see? Why was no one paying attention? She was drowning. Betty Cooper was falling apart and everyone was just watching it happen. Jughead Jones couldn't understand how the girl who helped everyone had no one to help her. Could he help her? No. he was too damaged to fix anything. But maybe he could try. While he was trying to fix Betty , it was Betty who was putting him back together again.





	1. Chapter 1

Jughead Jones had been through a lot in his young life,  
Not that he was complaining. He was grateful for the experiences, they helped thicken his skin prepared him for how tough the real world was.  
None the less it was obvious that his life wasn't ideal, and he wore the bitterness of it all like a scar.  
Always there and shown to the world.

But he wasn't the only one who had scars.

Some scars were hidden, tucked away behind pieces of clothing or strategically placed in secret spots.

Betty Coopers life was just that. 

A secret scar. 

He watched as she smiled and laughed along with her friends.

She performed cheerleading routines effortlessly always keeping her face hidden in the background a phony grin too big to be natural.

She never failed a test and never let a strand of her honey blonde ponytail fall out of place. 

She pined after the all American football player, the boy who lived next door.

She did these things because she had to. 

When someone mentioned Betty Cooper these were the things they brought up. 

But jughead, he saw more.

He saw the way she dug her fingernails into her palms whenever someone would mention her sister.

The way she practically jumped out of her mothers car, always wiping tears off of her face as she was dropped off for school.

How she would move the food around her plate at lunch time hardly taking two bites.

He knew she stayed after school to run the track for two hours everyday. Always declining Archie's offer to walk her home.

Betty Cooper was drowning, and he was sitting back watching it happen. 

He cared about her. 

He wasn't afraid to admit that, she meant more to him than anyone in his life. 

She had been there for him when they were younger, she would still be there for him now if he hadn't pushed her away. 

He could remember the countless times she would stand up tall to Reggie mantle her blonde pigtails swinging behind her as she declared

"Jughead is my best friend, if you don't have anything nice to say to him, you shouldn't say anything at all."

She would turn to him take his hand and every time she would turn back to Reggie 

"I happen to think juggie is the best darn boy in this school." 

He smiled slightly at the memory. 

Recalling the other times she would force her mother to pack two lunches. One for herself and one for him.

He was poor. She was not.

But to her they were one in the same.

They were a team. 

It all changed though, when his mother had finally had enough and walked out on him and his father, taking jellybean with her.

He vowed to never trust another woman again. 

And yeah he made that clear to Betty, pushing her away and avoiding her for an entire year until she finally gave up and grew closer to Archie Andrews, her next door neighbor.

But as he grew older he realized it wasn't Betty's fault his mother had abandoned him, it was his fathers. 

Unfortunately it was a little too late and she had already started covering up her scars. 

But 

Standing here watching the beautiful blonde, running on that track until her lungs burned he knew there was no way he could let her fall. 

He was gonna save her, well he was gonna try.


	2. Green eyes, green grass

Throwing herself onto the soft grass on the side of the riverdale outdoor track, Betty stretched her sore calves letting the burning in her lungs subside.

Closing her eyes she breathed in the cool air and let the quiet of a slow Friday afternoon wash over her. 

She was tired. So tired.

She was tired of smiling, tired of fighting, tired of pretending. 

Just tired.

Letting her hands run through the manicured grass she allowed her thoughts to run to her sister.

Polly was gone, she'd taken her life last year after an unplanned pregnancy fell through and her parents sent her away. It had all gotten to be too much so she just ended it. 

Simple as that, all her problems were gone. She was just gone. 

Betty would never commit suicide, she saw what that did to families and how the affect could be damaging to others, she would never want anyone to hurt the way she did. 

Opening her eyes she laid there unmoving just looking at the sky and trying not to think. 

she felt the grass shift underneath her.  
As she turned her head, she was suddenly face to face with the beanie wearing boy she had at one point been best friends with. 

He was laying there smiling at her and as hard as she tried she couldn't not return his smile.

"Hey."

She raised a questioning brow at him

"Hey?" 

She sighed turning to stare back at the sky.

"What are you doing here jughead?"

"Enjoying the view" he stated simply. 

She sat up taking in his relaxed posture, head resting in his hands tucked behind him, legs lazily spread out and wearing that goofy grin she had always loved. 

"Eyes up here Cooper" 

She barked out a laugh rolling her eyes as he went to sit up next to her. 

After about fifteen minutes of comfortable quiet, each of them plucking blades of grass and silently competing who could get the longer piece, Betty spoke up. 

"I'm gonna head home." 

Jughead locked eyes with her and smiled crookedly 

"Want a walking partner?" 

She smiled, heaving herself up not saying anything.

As she went to walk away, she noticed he wasn't fowllowing. 

Looking back she nodded her head forward.

Jughead sprung up and caught up with her, matching her steps and shoving his hands into his pocket.


	3. New Beginnings

Betty did everything.. quietly.

From the way she packed up her bookbag, to the way she carried her feet on the concrete sidewalk. 

She hardly made a noise when she gently zipped up the gray wind breaker , and retied her shoes.

Everything was meticulous, and done with a certain air of grace, it was hard for jughead not to watch. 

She was just so damn quiet. 

So when she turned to jughead and spoke, he was shook out of his thoughts, with a visible jump.

Laughing and taking a step away from him, she smiled 

"I'm ready to go, do you have everything?" 

Weighing the heavy backpack on his shoulders, he looked down at himself and smirked.

"Shoes on my feet, shirt on my back, I am good to go."

As she moved to pick up her bag from the bleachers, jughead reached a long arm out, snatching the bag from her grip.

She looked at him, wide eyed for a second, before going to take it back 

"I can do that, you don't have to carry my bag, I'm perfectly capable of doing that on my own."

"Shut up and let me carry your bag woman, geez you'd think I just declared war on Russia." 

Huffing she turned forward, trying (and failing) to hide the smile on her face. 

As they walked in what quickly became uncomfortable silence, he started getting that nervous itch he got, whenever he was put in an awkward situation. 

Almost as if sensing his tension betty turned to him, putting him out of his misery.

"Why the sudden interest in me jughead? I mean come on it's Been what? 6 years? You haven't spoken to me in to me in 6 years, not for lack of trying on my part I may add" 

Okay she was angry.

Good, that was an emotion, a feeling. 

He sighed juggling the two backpacks on his shoulders.

"I've always had an interest in you Bets, even if I haven't been around I've always had an interest. I'm sorry. I pushed you away. I didn't want anything to do with you, I was hurting. You know I've always been emotionally stunted." He tried to lighten the mood giving her a crooked smile. 

She had calmed down and was now regarding him, with soft eyes and pure confusion on her face.

Betty was smart though, and he knew, if she saw that he didn't want to talk about it, she wasn't going to.

"Emotionally stunted?" She snorted  
"Try emotionally paralyzed" 

He gently swatted her shoulder 

And she smiled at him, an actual Betty Cooper genuine smile.

He stuck his hand out to her 

"Jughead Jones the third, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Her eyes brightened, and she clutched his hand 

"Betty Cooper the first. The pleasure is mine."

It was a start.


	4. Yellow like the sunshine

Waking up this morning, Betty felt lighter than she had in months.  
Last night she and jughead had sat on the porch for hours, talking and laughing, sharing memories from when they were kids, when things were easy.   
He never brought up Polly.  
He never mentioned her palms.  
He didn’t look at her funny when she snorted.  
He just let her be. Let her be imperfect, she didn’t have to think, her guard was down, it was only a few hours but that was enough.  
Everything good thing must come to end of course, so when they saw Alice coopers headlights coming down the road, jughead had slipped out through the back, throwing a wave her way and making her heart hurt with that lazy smile.   
Speaking of her mother  
All thoughts of peace and calm were knocked out of her head ,when her mother came barreling In holding a glass of water and of course,  
Her pills.  
“What are you doing still in bed Elizabeth? Get up get dressed, come, it’s like you enjoy being difficult.”   
Sitting up robotically her mother dropped the pills in her palm.   
“Swallow”   
Betty did as she was told, almost immediately feeling the effect, her brain becoming painfully alert.   
“Twenty minutes, or I’m coming back up here” her mother flattened her pin straight skirt and walked out of the pink bedroom.  
Letting go of the breath she had been holding Betty got dressed.   
Yellow sundress, yellow cardigan , light beige booties.  
Yellow was her favorite color.  
Her mother found it childish, why couldn’t she wear blues they brought out her eyes?  
She liked yellow, she was gonna wear yellow even if her mother did turn a lovely shade of red every time she caught her in it.  
Pulling on the cardigan, she checked her reflection.  
Perfect.  
Everything was perfect.  
She practiced her smile in the mirror, big, but not too much teeth.  
Perfect.  
“ELIZABETH!”   
Her mother shrill yell knocked her out of her thoughts, grabbing her book bag she headed downstairs.  
Her mother and father were standing by the door briefcases in hand.  
“Were leaving, we can’t take you to school today dear, if anything happens you know my cell.” Her mother said raising a brow.  
Sometimes her mother was okay,  
“And do not forget, you have piano lessons right after school, colleges look for well rounded, musically inclined students, you could be so talented if you just applied…”   
And that was over.  
Her dad ushered her mom out the door, cutting her off mid sentence.   
“Have a good day at school peanut, I’ll see you tonight”   
She half-smiled and waved.  
As soon as the door clicked , she slumped against the kitchen counter closing her eyes.   
Twenty minutes later and she was ready to start her walk.   
Popping the apple in her mouth, so she could use her hands to lock the door, she smiled successfully before turning around and nearly face planting into concrete her apple falling out of her mouth.  
“What the..”  
She looked back to see what she had tripped on only to come face to face with the beanie wearing boy who now had her dirty apple in his hands.  
“You done with this?”  
Betty scrunched her nose and nodded.  
He wiped it off on his pant leg and took a huge bite.  
Oh ew.  
He wiggled his eyebrows at her   
“Yummy.”  
She couldn’t help the small smile that peeped through on her face.   
“Number one: that’s disgusting Number two: what are you doing here?”  
He shrugged his shoulders smiling  
“Five second rule, and I was on my way to school, figured we make such good walking buddies, why not try this again.” He smirked his cocky crooked smile.  
Rolling her eyes she started walking, he quickly fell into step with her.  
“What do you mean I was on the way? Don’t you and your dad live on the opposite side of town?” Betty questioned   
Jugheads face played out a million emotions in the two seconds it took him to answer.   
“I don’t live with my dad anymore” was his simple answer.   
Betty was shocked, and apparently it was obvious   
Jughead laughed at her slack jaw and wide eyes  
“A story for another time green eyes”  
Letting it drop, she brought the conversation back to lighter territory.   
“I see that your obsession with food hasn’t changed.”   
Jugheads eyes lit up   
“Oh bets you have no idea”   
The whole rest of the walk was filled with playful teasing, and talks of mouthwatering favorite foods.  
When they arrived in front of riverdale high, jughead saw the way she tensed and straightened her shoulders, that fake smile finding permanent residence on her face.  
“Why do you do that?”   
She seemed taken a back by his question  
“Do what?”   
“Put on that mask for everyone? the little miss perfect mask”   
Hurt flashed across her beautiful features, and he instantly wanted to take it back.   
“You might wanna take a look in the mirror  Forsythe p jones, I’m not the only one wearing a mask.” She looked pointedly at the headphones he wore to block everyone out, before she turned on her heel and started making her way up the steps.   
As he stared after her, he couldn’t believe he had messed it up again.   
He’d fix it.  
He wasn’t gonna let her get away.  
Not again.


End file.
